Valentine's Day
by IronAmerica
Summary: A Valentine's Day in three perspectives. Contains shenanigans, teddy bears, the trappings of the day, and Vinwell, Pence and Dales.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, I lied. I wrote more Vinwell. Happy Valentine's Day, Orwell.

Un-beta'ed and written in 24 hours or less.

- o -

Chapter One: Little Red Hearts

There were times when Vince wished he didn't know his partner as well as he did. He would have been lying if he'd said he knew half of what went through his partner's head on the best of days, but right now it was even worse. He cared for his partner, but some days, it was hard to keep calm and composed.

She really got under his skin some days.

Today was no exception. He'd taken a look at the calendar tacked to one of the walls with a throwing knife, and immediately slunk back to bed. Of all the days for Orwell to be mopey, she'd had to choose Valentine's Day. (He couldn't really fault her for it, though; Dana was having dinner with some guy after work. His only saving grace was that it wasn't Travis Hall.)

The vigilante crawled out of bed shortly before six that evening, preparing for another patrol. Surprisingly enough, nothing was on Orwell's radar. Back when he'd been a cop, it had been fairly busy—Valentine's Day, Christmas, and Tax Day seemed to be the days to commit murder in Palm City.

Vince took one look at his partner, who was slumped over her keyboard and contemplating a mug of cold coffee, and made a decision.

"I'll be back later, Orwell," he said. The non-committal grunt he got in reply wasn't encouraging.

Half an hour later, Vince strolled back into the lair, concealing whatever it was that he'd bought behind his back. Orwell looked at him, eyebrows raised. She didn't look happy, and there were dark circles under her eyes. Vince had the same dark circles under his eyes, so he couldn't fault her there—both of them needed more sleep, or stronger coffee.

The vigilante walked over to his partner and held out what he'd bought. "Happy Valentine's Day," he said, and walked back to his bed. He smiled as he heard Orwell tearing the tape off the badly wrapped package.

Orwell looked down at the red heart-shaped box in her hands, newspaper wrapping crumpled on the floor. Happy Valentine's, the box said. The blogger smiled and opened it. The chocolate was thoughtful of him, and—she checked the packaging—she now owed him big time for finding espresso-laced candy.

She'd never liked little red hearts, but for Vince, she'd make an exception.

- o -

So, what did you think? Mushy enough for Valentine's Day? Drop a line and let me know!


	2. Romantic Movies

Hey look! An update in less than half an hour!

Un-beta'ed and written in 24 hours or less.

- o -

Chapter Two: Romantic Movies

There were very few things that Vince Faraday found amusing about his husband. The fact that they'd been enemies only a few months ago had something to do with it. The man's stubborn insistence on working long hours was something he could relate to, though. But this…this was ridiculous.

He leaned against the door to their shared bedroom, thick blanket wrapped around his shoulders. Either the heating had broken (unlikely, given that this was ARK Towers), or Peter was having another spat with Chess. In any case, watching his spouse trying to get out of bed once again was hilarious. And kind of pathetic too, come to think of it.

Vince sighed and pushed himself off the door, walking over to his husband's side of the bed. "Peter, what's going on?" Peter looked at him, a mutinous expression on his face.

"Piss off, Vince," Peter snapped irritably, before grabbing the tissue box again. Oh yeah. Peter was irritable and cranky when he was sick. Vince hid a smile behind his hand as the older man made a rude gesture in his direction. Really, this was just…sad.

"You're sick, aren't you?" Vince asked, finally wiping the smile off his face. Peter gave him a look that was clearly asking if he was an idiot.

"Since you're _so_ inquisitive," Peter replied, words thick through the sinus blockage he was being forced to endure, "yes. I'm sick. Happy?"

Vince placed the back of his hand against Peter's forehead, frowning. Well, now he knew why the heat was off… "Stay right here," the former police officer ordered. He stood up and walked out of the room, shooting a look at Peter as he left. The billionaire glowered back, but obligingly flopped back against the pillows with a resigned expression.

The vigilante returned a few minutes later with a glass of orange juice and what looked like a portable DVD player tucked under one arm. He had no doubt pilfered it from his son's bedroom, as there was a perfectly good flat screen in their bedroom.

Peter raised an eyebrow as Vince set up the video player and handed him the glass of juice. "May I inquire as to what brought this on?" he asked, taking a sip of the orange juice.

"You forgot what day it is, didn't you?" Vince asked, settling onto the bed next to Peter. At the other man's inquisitive expression, he sighed. "It's Valentine's Day. Now shut up and watch the movie."

The billionaire had to agree with Chess at that point. When _had_ their spouse gotten so pushy? (And he really was going to have to figure out where the man had gotten hold of a copy of _The Princess Bride_.) Oh well. At least today wasn't going to be _completely_ wasted…

"Happy Valentine's Day," Vince whispered, pressing a kiss onto Peter's temple as the movie began playing. Peter agreed with the sentiment.

- o -

So, what did you think? Still hate Valentine's Day, Lawyer-minion? Drop a line and let me know!


	3. Teddy Bear

Well, it's the last chapter. Enjoy, folks, and happy Valentine's Day!

Un-beta'ed and written in 24 hours or less.

- o -

Chapter Three: Teddy Bear

There were a few facts that Dana Thompson was sure of, in regards to her boyfriend. One: He hated Christmas and almost everything associated with it (except for ice skating and hot cocoa). Two: Despite his collection of old musicals—among them _Hello Dolly _—he didn't have a romantic bone in his body. Three: She had never heard him saying anything remarkably pleasant about the holidays traditionally celebrated by mainstream America.

So, when she woke up to find a white teddy bear clutching a red heart staring at her instead of a half-asleep Dominic Raoul, she was surprised. To say the least. The teenager sat up and picked up the bear, marveling at how soft it was. She grinned and buried her nose in the plush fur, giggling as she picked up the scent of cinnamon.

Fact number four about her blockhead of a boyfriend: He was really good at finding out what people liked. For Dana, cinnamon reminded her of home and… The law student paused in her musings, catching another scent entirely. Dominic was in the kitchen, and it smelled like breakfast.

Still clutching her Valentine's bear, Dana walked out of their tiny bedroom and strode towards the kitchen. Of all the rooms in their apartment, this one was used the most. Well, if you didn't count the bedroom it was.

Dana paused in the doorway between the main room and the kitchen. Her boyfriend was standing in front of the stove, humming some tune under his breath as he cooked. From the looks of things, he was in a (dare she say it) romantic frame of mind. There was another bear at her side of the table. This one was red and had a white heart.

Apparently the bear she'd woken up to was one of a set. The law student giggled and picked up the bear. She looked over at her boyfriend, who'd stopped cooking and was watching her with a small smile on his face.

"Morning luv," he rumbled. Dana set the bears down on the table and walked over to him.

"Morning you," she replied, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Happy Valentine's Day," she added, kissing his shoulder. (Darn it, why was he so tall?)

He grunted in reply to that, but Dana saw the smile on his face.

Shortly after they'd begun eating breakfast, Dominic looked up from his plate of eggs and toast.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Dana." He smiled again, and Dana had to reconsider some of the facts she knew about him.

Fact five: Maybe Dominic _did_ have a romantic bone in his body…

- o -

Well, what did you think? Too mushy or not enough? Drop a line and let me know!


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